When do we start the Paula Bennett-bashing? How about now?

It hasn’t taken long for National to trot out the beneficiary-bashing - I really thought they’d leave it to the second term, but I suppose they’re riding high in the polls and feeling a bit cocky.

The irony is in this case that Paula Bennett, the minister for social development, is stripping away the exact kind of support that got herself off the benefit and into a career which has seen her go as far as well, being a minister in government.

But the most disturbing aspect of this current round of kicking people while they’re down, is that Bennett is basically saying if you disagree with the government, it’s okay for the government to release your personal details to the world and invite the ugly side of NZ society to publicly attack you.

These women are trying to get themselves off the benefit by going into training - and to be recieving benefits as large as they are, it’s obvious they have a number of children to look after, whose fathers aren’t in the picture. It’s hard enough bringing up kids when both parents are present, let alone doing it by yourself. And what would the privileged arsehole class suggest she do? Stay on the benefit, the one they’d strip from her if they had the chance? Kids don’t choose their parents, and it’s not the mothers you’d be punishing the most by taking it away.

When will people learn that punishing children for the choices of their parents’ only leads to more money being spent on social needs further down the track?

And when will they learn the key thing to getting people into paid employment and off govt support is education and opportunity?

No matter how much money John Key managed to siphon out of the economy as a money trader, his job will never, ever be as important as someone who brings up children alone.

Bit of a Blur

I’m reading a book at the moment (Shock! Horror! But I’ll have you know I used to read like… some kind of reading… machine…), Alex James’ autobiography, Bit of a Blur. It’s entertaining, but worthless if you want any kind of insight into Blur’s songwriting and recording processes.

As a result I’ve been relistening to Blur’s catalague (I’m not so sure about my ‘listen to every song on my iTunes in order of shortest to longest’ idea anymore), and I have to say because I had such crappy stereos and headphones as a kid, I never realised what an awesome bassist Alex is.

It’s easier to read on a bus than it is walking, which is one advantage of living out here in Avondale. The other, I suppose, is that we miss the new motorway by a kilometre or two, give or take.

In other news… Parker did his first tummy-to-back roll today! Then wouldn’t stop doing them.

Hopefully this one won’t get stolen…

Bought a new guitar today - from the reviews/retail prices I’ve seen, I think I got a major bargain… $300 including the case, and it’s pretty much new, hardly been used. Apparently the mum bought it for her kid, but he didn’t take to it, preferring the Epiphone his uncle or someone got him. Ah well - my gain! 

It’s a Karina Les Paul copy, looks pretty much like the classic white Les Paul James Dean Bradfield plays.

Watching the season finale of Lost tonight… treading carefully on the interwebs till then… 

In other news… Melissa Lee continues to entertain. We’re no longer in the Mt Albert electorate, just outside of it really, but I can still confidently say she never had a chance before this week, but well and truly doesn’t now. I doubt she’ll ever be able to stand for Waitakare either, considering her support for the motorway through Mt Albert is predicated around bypassing criminals west.

Assembled my cross trainer yesterday - if only that was the hard part. Now I have to convince myself to use it. I think I’ll find a way to set the computer never to display the calories burned, as it’s a little depressing. It’s a minute of running/walking/whatever it is you call what you do on a cross trainer to hurn off a Diet Coke. That’s not encouraging!

New Manics album next week. Freakin’ excited.

Blogging at work…

And I don’t mean making a blog entry while I’m at work, though that shouldn’t be ruled out - it’s my new blog at 3news.co.nz, so it’s literally a blog at work. It’s about… go have a read, and you’ll see. RSS/Atom feed also available.

I was planning my next entry to be all about a genius idea the local bus companies should implement immediately, that will vastly increase the number of users, but that will have to wait. ‘Cause I’m blogging at work…

Where is Garth McVicar in all of this?

A guy kicks his girlfriend in the back, breaking it, and gets off with community work and a fine that he’ll barely notice.

And there’s no comment from Garth McFuckface and his Idiot Sentencing Trust? Why ever not?

Could it be ’cause Tony Veitch is wealthy and white?